Page 23 of Guarded By the SEAL
He chalked it up to intense fatigue. “Get some sleep.”
“I feel terrible you have to sleep on the floor.”
“It’s no big deal.”
“You came all this way just because Ghost asked you to, then you’ve stuck with us while everyone thinks I’m a kidnapper—”
“And an arsonist.”
“Thanks for reminding me. And now you have to sleep on the hard floor while we have this nice soft bed.”
He couldn’t help his wry smile. “Well, when you put it that way, I’m really getting shafted.”
“I’m sorry.” she said sincerely.
His hand itched to touch her, but he kept it by his side. “Don’t worry about it.”
“Thanks, Wyatt.” She pulled the blanket up to her chin. “Sorry I woke you.” She rolled over easily without him in the way.
He made his way back to his bed on the floor, and unloaded his weapon for the second time that night before lowering himself to the ground. Punching his pillow, he snuggled up with that same goddamn blanket, thinking about the softness of the wide king bed and Teslyn’s incredibly soft skin—both just out of reach.
CHAPTER12
Teslyn rode in the passenger seat of the truck, squinting against the bright light of a sunny morning. She hadn’t had any nightmares after talking to him in the night, but her mind had incorporated him into a different type of dream altogether. She was certain she’d blushed a deep crimson every time he’d made eye contact with her today.
Ivy was in the back seat, happily coloring in a coloring book Wyatt had thought to purchase at the convenience store the night before. The look in her eyes when he’d given them to her made Teslyn remember how little she herself had once had. A fresh box of crayons was not a priority on Marilyn’s shopping list, and Wyatt had clearly been elevated to superhero status with that particular purchase.
They’d stopped at a drive-thru for breakfast before hitting the road, and they were deliberately rationing Ivy’s liquids in hopes of making the four-hour drive without a very public stop at a rest area. So when the girl piped up two hours into the trip and said she had to go to the bathroom, Teslyn and Wyatt shared a look of concern.
“We could pull over,” Teslyn suggested quietly.
He shook his head. “A passing cruiser might stop just to see if everything’s okay. I’ll get off at this exit. We’ll make it work.”
He sounded confident, but the idea made her stomach burn as if she’d swallowed acid. She’d already learned, all it took was one alert employee, one observant grandmother, or a snippet of video footage, and the authorities would be all over them. Add to that, Ivy was wearing the same clothes as the last time she’d been spotted, and those images had likely been broadcast all over the news. “How?”
Slowing down, he took an exit ramp that led to a two-lane road with shopping plazas on either side. “We need to get her new clothes.”
“Walmart?” Teslyn suggested.
“They’ll have cameras. Someplace smaller.”
Her eyes scoured a large board that listed the stores in that plaza. “Thrift shop. Go there.” He pulled into the parking lot. Teslyn turned to Ivy. “I’m going to buy you some new clothes. I’ll be quick, then we’ll take you to a bathroom.”
“I gotta go now,” Ivy whined.
Wyatt parked. “I’ve got this.” He turned to Ivy. “Can I see your coloring?”
Teslyn slipped out of the truck.
“Wait!” he called, just as she was about to close the door. “Take my sunglasses. There’s a baseball cap in the back.”
Chastising herself for nearly going out in public without the smallest disguise, she did as she was told, donning the sunglasses before Ivy handed her a Miami Dolphins hat. “Dolphins fan, huh?” she asked, putting it on.
“I enjoy disappointment,” he quipped, with a smile that made her heart pause too long between beats.
She closed the door and headed inside, hurriedly flipping through racks of girls’ clothing. She only had twenty bucks in cash, but the three tops and two pairs of shorts she picked out came to only half that, and the clerk barely seemed to notice she was alive. Teslyn was back in the truck in no time, assuring Ivy she and Wyatt wouldn’t turn around while the girl changed in the back seat.
This was going better than she could have hoped.
